Northern Namibia & Botswana – Part 1, Kaokoland

After driving approximately 2,400 kilometres in 3 days we finally arrive in Kamanjab. We are on our way to Kaokoland, the remote wilderness area in north-western Namibia. This is the first leg of a 4-week long overland adventure which will also take us through Ovamboland, Boesmanland and the Caprivi in Namibia before crossing the border into Botswana. In Botswana we will visit the Chobe river, Linyanti, Savuti and Moremi before heading back home.

Kamanjab is the last town where we are guaranteed to get fuel before we head into the remote wilderness of Kaokoland. We won’t pass through any other towns for at least the next 4 days. So I make sure that my Toyota’s two diesel tanks (140 litres) as well as two additional jerrycans, each containing 25 litres, are full. The roads in Kaokoland are notoriously bad and you can never be too conservative when calculating the anticipated fuel consumption. The first town where we are guaranteed to get fuel is Opuwo, at least 950 kilometres of driving if we stick to our planned route. We eventually reach our campsite at Hoada in Damaraland, where we will stay and relax for the next two nights. We are treated to a beautiful sunset, complete with distant thunder clouds and a rainbow. We spend the next day relaxing at our campsite and next to the swimming pool, recovering from 3 long days on the road.

Sunset at Hoada campsite

Sunset from campsite at Hoada in Damaraland

Sunset from our campsite at Hoada

View from the swmming pool area at Hoada campsite in Damaraland

View from the swimming pool at Hoada

Dry riverbeds & desert animals

We get up early and just after sunrise we are ready to hit the road again. The C40 takes us through the beautiful Grootberg pass with the first rays of the sun turning the horizon into a canvas of soft pastel colours.

After turning onto the C43 towards Palmwag we get the first veterinary disease control checkpoint. We are driving north over the so-called ‘red line’, into the controlled area, and are therefore allowed to have raw meat with us. If you cross the ‘red line’ from north to south however, any uncooked meat found in your possession will be confiscated regardless of packaging or where it was purchased.

We are soon on our way again and drive through Khowarib to Sesfontein. If you are lucky you can find fuel at Fort Sesfontein and we stop to enquire. Unfortunately there is no diesel available, only petrol. Filling up here wasn’t essential, but would have been a bonus. So we continue on the D3707 for another 33 kilometres where we leave the road to enter the Ganamub riverbed.

To travel in these parts of the world a proper GPS with detailed maps is an absolute necessity. You also need to do a lot of research to plan your route. I use a Garmin GPSMAP 276Cx with Tracks4Africa and plan all the routes before the trip on my laptop using Basecamp.

So the point where we need to leave the road is a mere GPS coordinate without any clear tracks leading to the river. We stop to ask some local farmers and they point us in the general direction of the riverbed. A few hundred metres further the road is blocked by a rope. The local people set up this, apparently ‘illegal’, checkpoint and you have to pay for entering the Ganamub. We don’t mind paying the N$100 per person and N$120 per car, as long as the money really benefits the community as a whole.

Ganamub river

Driving along the riverbed we soon enter a canyon and before long come across a herd of springbok and a few giraffes. Approximately 29 kilometres after entering the river we get to ‘Die Poort’ where we turn right into the Hoanib river, surrounded by some breathtaking desert scenery. There are numerous magnificent Ana trees scattered throughout the riverbed. The desert elephants like to feed on these trees and we are hoping to see some of these elusive giants who are specially adapted to survive in this harsh environment.

‘Die Poort’

Coming around a bend in the river, there they are – a herd of about 8 – right next to the road about 50 metres away. Among them, the tiniest little elephant I have ever seen. Before long we realise that it is a newborn, barely able to stand on its own four legs! We feel really privileged to encounter such a special moment and are once again humbled by the greatness and beauty of creation. We soon learn from the people in one of the other 2 vehicles watching that the calf was in fact born less than an hour before.

Seeing that the herd is standing next to the road we know from experience (and common sense) that there is no way to pass the herd on the track that we are on. The driver of the game viewing vehicle from a nearby lodge try to persuade us to do exactly that! After watching the herd in silence for another 15 minutes we find a detour further to our left, leaving the herd and the lodge vehicle behind.

Newborn desert elephant calf in the Hoanib riverbed Kaokoland

Desert giraffes in the dry Hoanib riverbed Kaokoland

Giraffes, Hoanib river, Kaokoland

Desert elephants in the Hoanib riverbed Kaokoland

Desert elephants, Hoanib river, Kaokoland

Later on we see more elephants, giraffes, springbok, ostriches as well as gemsbok (oryx). We continue to Amspoort where we turn north into the Tsuxub river. The landscape suddenly opens up and is very different from the Hoanib. It is time to have lunch but there are very few large trees with sufficient shade around. We eventually find a beautiful camel thorn tree and stop for a short lunch break.

Lunch stop under a huge camelthorn tree in Kaokoland

After lunch the road becomes badly corrugated and we have to stop more than once to check that our equipment is still fine and everything secured. We reach the Hoarusib river by 15h00 and decide that we will be able to make it to Puros well in time to set up camp before sunset.

But….. we first have to conquer the Puros canyon. This time of the year there is still a lot of water in the canyon and several water crossings to negotiate. The fact that there are fresh tracks showing that other vehicles made it through gives some peace of mind, but going through some of the longer (and deeper) water crossings certainly causes some stress! I have a lot of respect (and reverend fear) for any form of natural water in Africa – and for good reason. The general rule is to see if you can walk through the water you are planning to cross. If the bottom is firm and the water not much deeper than knee-height it is usually safe.

We make it safely through with a substantial amount of mud on the cars as evidence before we finally reach the settlement of Puros. On entering the community campsite there are two elephant bulls right next to the road.

After setting up camp we give the cars a quick ‘wash’ to remove most of the mud before it dries and I also do some minor repairs to the front number plate and the canopy’s rubber seals. Time to relax, sit around the campfire, have a braai and reflect on a very eventful day!

Into the Hartmann valley

After breakfast we leave the campsite at Puros and descend into the Hoarusib river driving in a northerly direction. It is not long before we see our first desert elephants of the day. There are some sandy patches but easy to negotiate with slightly deflated tyres. At times the track disappears but we manage to find our way back every time. In the process we are having a lot of fun and enjoy soaking up the beautiful surroundings. We are very fortunate to have another two sightings of elephants before we leave the Hoarusib river.

We now take a road linking the Hoarusib and Khumib rivers and it proofs to be a very scenic drive through some dramatic desert landscapes. On the way we see a small herd of Hartmann’s mountain zebra. They are a subspecies of mountain zebra found in western Namibia. Just before we reach the Khumib river we stop at a Himba kraal to have a closer look at the huts and other structures. The OvaHimba are semi-nomadic people and indigenous to Kaokoland.

Between the Hoarusib and Khumib rivers in Kaokoland

Between the Hoarusib & Khumib rivers

Himba kraal near Khumib river in Kaokoland

Upon reaching the Khumib river we choose to take the road running on the banks of the river instead of the one in the riverbed. Simply to be able to drive a little faster and save some time in order to hopefully reach the Hartmann valley before sunset. After leaving the Khumib the road leading to Orupembe is badly corrugated and the going painfully slow. We eventually reach Orupembe and continue further north in the direction of Oranjedrom where the outside temperature reaches a staggering 45 degrees centigrade!

We reach Oranjedrom at about 16h45 and still need to find a place to camp. There is a perfect camping spot about 20 minutes drive north of Oranjedrom where I have camped before and we decide to drive the last few kilometres as the sun is setting in the west. The area where we set up camp is slightly elevated and there are some rocks that give shelter against the wind. The view over the plains with the Hartmann mountains in the distance creates the perfect start to yet another wonderful evening around the campfire under the stars. It is very liberating to know that there are no other people around and we retire to our rooftop tents contemplating another adventure filled day in Africa.

Oranjedrom

Camping in the Hartmann valley

‘Dromme’ & challenging roads

We awake to a beautiful sunrise and after a small breakfast we are on the road back to Oranjedrom. Here we turn east and continue to Bloudrom where we stop for a few photos before heading for Rooidrom. The original Rooidrom was used by Ben van Zyl for storing fuel but later became a road marker. The other drums also serve as road markers, positioned at major intersections.

Bloudrom, Kaokoland

At Rooidrom we turn south on the road going towards the marble mine. The Rooidrom pass is quite a challenge, requiring patience, concentration and skill. Slowly but surely the Hilux and Amarok creep up the hill, negotiating the rugged terrain with great ease. After the marble mine the road improves and within a few kilometres we reach a long sandy stretch of road where we stop to take pictures before continuing, and eventually reach the road coming from Orupembe.

Between the marble mine and Orupembe road in Kaokoland

Here we turn left towards Otjiaa and initially the road is relatively good and we are optimistic that we can make up some time. We have no fixed plans for where we want to camp tonight and will decide as the day progresses. Our optimism is soon dampened when the road becomes progressively worse. The going is slow and it takes about 3 hours to cover a distance of 35 kilometres through mountainous terrain.

We eventually reach Etanga village at around 15h00 where the road widens and we can drive a little faster. The last 100 kilometres to Opuwo take less than 2 hours and we arrive at the Opuwo Country Hotel just before sunset. Apparently they have a problem with people coming into the camp at night stealing from campers and there are armed security guards patrolling the area throughout the night. Very unfortunate and not my best night’s sleep!

Epupa Falls

After 5 days without WiFi we spend some time catching up on e-mails and phone calls in the luxury of the hotel lobby before going into town to stock up on supplies and to refuel the cars. The C43 to Epupa is a wide gravel road but there are several dry river crossings where one needs to slow down. Despite that we cover the 179 kilometres in good time and arrive at Epupa Falls Lodge around noon.

We choose a campsite right in the corner of the resort on the banks of the Kunene river. The camping area have several magnificent makalani palms supplying ample shade. The rest of the afternoon is spent relaxing at our campsite and cooling down in the swimming pool. Ewert and I meet Bert, a young Belgian guy, at the pool. Bert took a year off work and travelled overland all the way from Belgium and his journey will end in South Africa a few weeks from now. He is very keen to drive the notorious Van Zyl’s pass, but we discourage him to try and do it on his own. Fortunately we meet some people in the campsite who are on their way to Van Zyl’s pass and they invite Bert to join them when they leave the next morning. You can read all about Bert’s amazing adventure on Polarsteps by searching for ‘Just some travel’.

View from the restaurant deck at Epupa Falls Lodge

View from the deck at Epupa Falls Lodge

The deck at the restaurant is an idyllic spot to have a sundowner. It is situated directly upstream of the falls and the view over the Kunene river is absolutely amazing. After yet another lovely braai we go to bed and fall asleep with the soothing sound of the waterfall in the distance.

Early the next morning we take a walk to the viewpoint and on returning spend the rest of the day relaxing at our campsite. We return to the viewpoint in the late afternoon to take photos and then back to the deck for sundowners to celebrate yet another awesome day in Africa.

Epupa Falls

Epupa falls Kunene river Kaokoland with baobab tree

Kunene River Lodge

The road between Epupa and Swartbooisdrif along the Kunene river was known to be one of those roads that only serious off-road drivers would take on. It used to take a full day to cover the 94 kilometres. Now that the road has been upgraded it only takes about 2-3 hours depending on how many stops you make along the way.

Most of the campsites at Kunene River Lodge are situated on the banks of the river among beautiful trees providing sufficient shade. We spend the afternoon relaxing and soaking up the beautiful surroundings.

View from campsite at Kunene River Lodge

Relaxing at our Kunene River Lodge campsite

View over the river at Kunene River Lodge

Early the next morning we are taken 3 kilometres upstream with a lodge vehicle where we start kayaking back to the campsite. It is a very relaxing and leisurely outing with plenty of bird life along the way. In the late afternoon I go for a stroll in the birding area adjacent to the lodge in search of the beautiful Cinderella Waxbill, only found in a very small area along the Kunene river. Patience pays off and I eventually see a couple of them sitting in some low scrub. A very special sighting indeed.

Kayaking on the Kunene river